Andrea Jesse's Blog

Saturday, January 9, 2021

Why did Wednesday, January 6 happen? - Text (Politics)

1) Trump - He is consumed with his own power. He cannot accept defeat. He is willing to say what people want to hear so that they follow him. 2) Social Media - At no time in history have people had access to (mis)information so rapidly. The misinformation and anger has spread like fire. 3) COVID - People in America are frustrated by the "control" the pandemic has had on them. They see it as compromising their freedom. 4) Racism - This goes way back. We had slavery. We had a Civil War. The south wanted to keep slavery. The north (and President Lincoln) wanted to end it. The north won the war. Lincoln lost his life (assassinated because he wanted to end slavery). Black people were given the right to vote after the Civil War victory, but racism persisted. So much so that they were kept from voting for another 100 years. In the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement happened. It was the "Black Lives Matter" of its day. Improvements were made. We even got our first black president in Barack Obama (2009 - 2017). People on the left were thrilled. People on the right were outraged. This is when the social media storm began and people like Donald Trump were saying things like Obama was not a citizen. This was when Trump's lies started entering people's political thoughts. His lies continued. He said things that the racist right wanted to hear. They wanted to believe it so much that they didn't bother to check to see if what he said was true. This continued to his election and has persisted through these last four years. He has told lie after lie and people have believed him because he says what they want to hear. This notion that the left stole the election has been a lie, but the crazed right-wing rioters wanted to believe it. Those violent criminals who tried to stop the democratic process and threatened our elected officials in Congress and destroyed parts of the people's Capital Building and caused the death of five people were inspired by Trump at the rally he held earlier that day and for months and years prior. Now we have Obama's former Vice President as our President and a mixed race female Vice President. Racists and sexists are outraged. There are parallels to Hitler and his followers. Things came to a point where no one dared oppose him. The same happened in our Congress. Every Republican stood by him until the insurrection on the Capitol Building on Wednesday. Some Republicans are now seeing the light and will vote for impeachment. It is important for impeachment to move forward. Our democracy must prevail. The actions of Trump, the instigator, and his violent followers must be punished to the full extent of the law.

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

A new company called Newlight is turning greenhouse gasses into truly biodegradable products (Innovation)

https://www.esquire.com/lifestyle/a34127608/newlight-covalent-restore-straws-leather-goods-review/ Today, California biotech company Newlight Technologies launches Restore and Covalent, its commercial food-ware and fashion lines featuring products made with its patented AirCarbon, a material derived from the secretions of microorganisms who have been fed greenhouse gases. In layman’s terms, this means they collect some pollution out of the air, serve it to some critters who say “Pollution? My favorite,” and then they eat that pollution. As atmospheric carbon is absorbed into our oceans, naturally occurring microorganisms feed on it and grow a material within themselves. Newlight has developed a method of collecting that material and molding it into a carbon-negative alternative to plastic and leather that they call AirCarbon. AirCarbon has been used to make packing material and office furniture, and now it’s being formed into straws, cutlery, eyewear, wallets, and handbags. In its newly-opened Huntington Beach production facility Eagle 3, Newlight recreates ocean water conditions, adds the microorganisms, then basically pollutes that water with greenhouse gases it’s collected from landfills and factories. The little guys eat, their little stomachs get full, Newlight empties those stomachs, then filters, dries and forms that substance into pellets which they melt and mold into commercial products. That is the technical terminology, yes. And since it repurposes greenhouse gases which would have ended up in the atmosphere, AirCarbon is carbon-negative. Every product they create is pollution that didn’t end up in the air and water. Restore also offers a line of straws, an alternative to the plastic ones that pollute our oceans, and the paper ones that even the greenest among us have to admit are not getting the job done. AirCarbon has also been formed into a leather alternative— called “Non-Leather,” because we can’t expect these people to be brilliant at everything— for a line of handbags, wallets, and phone and tablet sleeves under the Covalent brand. Non-Leather may not have the heft of real leather, but it’s not flimsy plastic either; the wallet is sturdy enough to accommodate all the credit cards you’re running up right now. All the Non-Leather goods come in AirCarbon’s natural off-white color, or black. Also, each Covalent product is emblazoned with a unique timecode called a “Carbon Date.” When entered into the Covalent website, the Carbon Date allows you to access the full history and carbon footprint of your piece, from when it was pollution and hungry microorganisms all the way up to when you bought it. Restore straws and cutlery are available for restaurants and food service companies now, and you can snap them up on their website restorefoodware.com. Covalent eyewear and Non-Leather goods are available now at covalentfashion.com.